Northburn100 2012

Northburn 100 this weekend, held on Northburn Station just outside Cromwell, seemed to have a bit of everything. The race itself is crazy hard, with the 100mile having over 8000 vertical meters of climbing, but what stood out for me this past weekend was the weather- easily the most changeable weather I can remember- gale winds that knocked people to the ground, warm temps, heavy rain, clear, starry skys and even a hail storm and a dusting of snow.

I guess I feel a little burnt out on the NB100 after doing the live updates- but far out that was a blast! This is not a personal blog, so I will not get into it too much, but as my first “official” outing for this new website it was a really good time and the feedback and support we were getting via the live feed and from the amount of traffic this website has gotten during its first week of being up and running has been pretty choice- thanks for the support!

Back to the Northburn100!

The racing was exciting and not just for those top spots, but as the day wore on and a new one started, following all of those racing was a real treat. Below are a few of the highlights

Blair McWhirter- not only is Blair super-fast, he is also one of the nicest guys around. I ran and videoed him coming into the 39km check point and he chatted away about his race. You couldn’t tell he had run 39km, 2000+ vertical meters and we were jogging uphill during the video! No surprize he smoked the 50k, winning by 40mins.

Damien Seller- the Frenchmen picked the Northburn 100km as his first 100k race and nailed it. He was all smiles. Best part of the day Damien? “right now… if someone can get me a beer”

Ray Sanchez- he was the favourite on paper pre-race and that was before he started talking about finishing the 100mile in 20hrs! Ray’s ultra-résumé is impressive and the article in the OTD where he stated his finishing time goal really brought an extra element of excitement to the race. Never mind that he got lost for 4hrs just before Mt Horn and DNFed at 100k, during the early stages of the race it was all Sanchez. Best part, chatting with him on Sunday morning it sound like he might be back next year.

“Grand Central Station”- that’s what the big tent at the start/finish area was like, (where runners came back to at the end of each of the 3 laps), especially at the end of lap 1. It was madness, as runners, pacers, crew and supporters beavered around. Rachael and Emma kept the score board up to date, while the Cromwell Loins Club had the cheeseburgers cranking.

Terry and Ed (Highland Events), Lisa and Tom- they put on a great event- seeing Tom fang around on his dirt bike was a highlight.

Glenn Sutton- 5+hr faster than last year – 26hrs33min and the overall win! Didn’t see THAT coming did you? Great run Glenn!

Andre and Gordi- this side story is a gem. Gordi’s light was playing up during the 2nd lap and as a result they spent the next 20 or so hours together. Strangers on the start line, these 2 lads could not have had more opposite NB build ups. Gordi injured and hardly trained couldn’t stay away and was a late entry- about 1 week before the race. Andre on the other hand has raced his ass off the last few months, including TuM a week before. Following these 2 along during the race was really good fun.

Sam Gash- she won the woman’s 100k, smiling the whole way I am sure!

Jim Kerse- yeah Jim dnf’d during the 2ndlap of the 100miler- but the guy is 60+yrs old and a total legend in the NZ ultra-scene. You simply can’t not have huge respect for Jim.

Jean- Photo- outdoorphotography.co.nz

Jean Beaumont – she won the woman’s 100mile, was only 14mins behind Glenn, and her new course record will be very hard to beat! It was her first 100mile race- no pacer, no crew, no support team. I was lucky enough to run a few sections with her getting photos and video and was so impressed. Jean also busted out the quote of the weekend to one Matt Bixley “So…you just got Beaumonted”- this is because she ran faster than Matt’s 2nd place finish time from 2011. She is also my new hero- sorry Marty Lukes, you are last week’s news buddy.

All those that had the guts to stand on that start line at 6am Saturday morning! It was a real pleasure to track your progress throughout the day(s).

Great report, I really enjoyed the event from an organisers perspective it was a pleasure working with all the athletes, supporters and especially all the volunteers who were fantastic keeping all the athletes safe throughout the event. A special thanks must go to Tom for providing such a fantastic venue and course.

Hey there – I am going to enter for the Northburn 100 miler and was wondering if there is anyone out there in Christchurch who would be interested in doing some night time running with me? I think it is a must in order to compete in this event and my experience at night is quite limited. It would be great to train with someone who is doing the run. If anyone knows of anyone who is keen please email me. I did Christchurch to Akaroa yesterday and back again today, so legs are a bit sore now, think in total it was 155 km over two days. ThanX Shannon

Facebook

BCR STRAVA

Social Links

About

A Backcountry Running Community for New Zealand trail, mountain and ultra runners- We want this to be the place you come for all things trail running including race previews and reports, interviews with New Zealand runners and hopefully a whole lot more! Our aim is to provide as much original content- previews/reports/interviews on New Zealand trail, mountain and ultra races. We can't be everywhere- so feel free to get in touch if you have the scoop on a race or event.